Preaching the word of God is a funny thing. On the surface, it looks just like any other instance of human communication. The speaker presents an idea; the listener can choose to accept or reject it. But in reality, preaching is different from every other instance of human communication, for one reason: the preacher communicates not the word of man, but the word of God.
People can learn from the word of man by a simple choice. We have a natural power to learn from others and to believe the word of others. When you tell me something new, I can see its reasonableness by my own lights. The word of God is a different matter. We cannot simply choose to believe by our own lights, because our natural lights are too dim to reach divine truths. To believe God’s word, we need a higher light: the light of supernatural faith. Only God can give so great a light.
This truth—that supernatural faith is a gift of God alone—shows that preaching is not like other human communication. Neither the preacher nor the listener can ensure that the word is received. Just like it takes three to get married, it takes three to get faith. What, then, is the role of the preacher?
The one who speaks the word of God prepares a place for faith. Like John the Baptist, he is not the Bridegroom, but the “friend of the Bridegroom” (John 3:29). He is another voice crying out, “Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight” (Mark 1:3). The preacher is called to go before the presence of the Lord, making hearts ready for his arrival.
But God does not always tell us exactly when he will act. Some days, the preacher mounts the pulpit, expecting his brilliant meditation to strike his hearers to the heart, but he sees only tired faces and half-comprehension. Other days, the preacher has prepared a homily on the wrong readings and clumsily improvises, but afterwards hears that his words struck a chord with the people. Because we often fail to perceive the Lord’s ways until he has already come, the preacher himself may be downright shocked when he finds himself with spiritual children in Christ. “From whence did these come? Where did I get these?” (Isa 49:21).
Today, we see a marvelous thing: conversions, entrances into religious life, a revival of faith in our God and his love for us. The Church may look around in wonder: “Who has borne me these, when I was bereft and barren? . . . I was left all alone; where then do these come from?” (Isa 49:21). But perhaps we should not be surprised at our own surprise: “The Spirit blows where it wills, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know whence it comes or where it goes. So is everyone born of the Spirit” (John 3:8).
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